 |
Blending Training for Early Childhood StaffDr. Susan H. Landry
RFA ReminderSeveral interested parties have submitted their Notice of Intent to Apply for the Texas School Ready! Project for the coming year. These letters of intent suggest a continuing, a renewed and even new interest in the quality program that is Texas School Ready! The Texas School Ready! Request for Applications (RFA) is posted on the Children’s Learning Institute’s website. The RFA can be accessed at the CLI website. Interested parties should have their applications submitted to the Children’s Learning Institute by the close of business, 5:00 p.m. CST, on Thursday, March 7, 2009. A Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document is posted on the CLI website, and is updated each Monday by 12 noon with questions addressed through the previous week. The FAQ will be updated through Monday, May 4, 2009. Questions regarding the RFA can be emailed to TexasSchoolReady@uth.tmc.edu or faxed to 713-500-0386. The staff at CLI strives to respond to questions and requests within 24-48 hours. Helping Children Prepare for the End of the School YearCathy Guttentag, Ph.D.
Teacher Self Report!Jane Thacker The deadline for data entry into the 2008 – 2009 Texas School Readiness Certification Pre K application will be Friday, June 26th. All components – Manage My School, Manage Student Records, Facility Report and Teacher Self Report - are currently available for data entry. The Coordinator/SRI Pre K Reports are available for all coordinators and SRIs to check on the status of their sites. Go to www.txsrcs.com. Please take advantage of this useful, new tool to see how your sites are progressing through the application. The Teacher Self Report is now available for all teachers to access and complete. The link below provides access to the instruction letter, Users’ Guide, and letter to principals/directors about the completion of the Teacher Self Report. Click here to read more about teachers participating in the Texas School Readiness Certification System Users, including principals/directors and teachers go to www.txstatecenterchild.com and follow instructions. Though a firm deadline for completion is not set, teachers in buildings seeking the Texas School Ready! Certification should work to complete this section of the application by mid May. Teachers are encouraged to contact their TEEM coordinator for information on times and locations to complete the survey through an eCIRCLE professional development class. Note: If a TEEM teacher in a building participating in TEEM has been replaced with a new teacher who will not continue in TEEM, then that new teacher must complete the Teacher Self Report for the building to be considered for the certification. This classroom started with a TEEM teacher and as a TEEM classroom is still serving Kinderbound children in the system. Integration teachers should be set up as a teacher/co-teacher in the classroom at the location where they serve-childcare or head start. They should only complete the TSR one time (some integration teachers will be connected through Manage My School with multiple classrooms). It is the school seeking certification. An integration teacher supports that goal. Thus, their report must be connected with the classroom at the location where they teach. The Support Center at OZ Systems, Inc. is also available to answer questions and assist users. Simply call 1-866-336-3025, Option 2, or email questions to schoolhelp@oz-systems.com . Kudos From The FieldThanks Carol Easters, TEEM Coordinator Copperas Cove ISD, and Tanya Dwyer, teacher William/Lovett Ledger Elementary for sharing what the children are doing in your classroom. What a wonderful testament for all the work and time you have dedicated to writing!
"Yesterday during centers, I noticed 3 students sitting together with their "thinking fingers" on their heads and sounding out words. When I walked over to get a closer look, there were two older students (4 and 5) helping a 3 year old to sound out words to write a letter to her mom! The two older kids would sound it out and tell her the letters to write and the 3 year old wrote most of them with a little help from one of the very good friends when she needed it. I didn't interrupt and walked away smiling to allow them to finish. When they were done, all 3 of them very proudly shared the note and read it to me. I wrote what they told me at the bottom so the parent would be able to see and appreciate this special letter. It almost brought me to tears thinking of how far this shy little 3 year old has come....from observing, to repeating, to recognizing letters and now writing them! I hope you enjoy it too!” - Tanya Dwyer Activities for the Nutrition Theme UnitBuilding classroom activities and materials around a thematic topic is a wonderful way to get children excited about learning and to connect the different areas of your curriculum in a meaningful, integrated way.
This month we are featuring activities that may give you additional ideas for the theme Nutrition. New Children’s Learning Institute PersonnelTracey Osborne - Educational Outreach Coordinator She became involved with Head Start as a TEA-C Grant Coordinator and Education Coordinator. During that time in her career, she also became a CIRCLE trainer and consultant. After the TEA-C grant ended, she became the TEEM grant Coordinator for the Galveston TEEM project. She has also had the opportunity to teach CDA classes for Positive Performance and has taught as an adjunct professor at College of the Mainland. Through all of these opportunities, she has developed a passion for the field of Early Childhood Education and how important our work really is!! Her personal priority is her family!! She has 3 children who have married great spouses and added 3 grandchildren to her family tree!! Her grandsons, Callan and Landon, live in Friendswood and are her life outside of work!! Her granddaughter, Claire, lives in Chicago, but they manage to see each other several times a year. She has been married for 33 years to her husband, Robin, who works in the Space Industry. In her spare time, she enjoy shopping, reading, and traveling. She is active in the LDS church as a Primary teacher of 5 year olds and serves on the Enrichment Committee for their Women’s organization. Davy Kong - Communications Specialist Newsletter Questions?If you have any questions regarding the newsletter, please contact Davy Kong at Davy.Kong@uth.tmc.edu |
April 2009Calendar of Events
|
Contact InformationJohn Gasko Cathy L. Guttentag, Ph.D. Davy Kong Layne Waxley |
|
|
Every child in America deserves to have a highly qualified teacher, whether or not it has been mandated by the federal government. But as more school districts have taken on the role of early childhood education provider, the quest for qualified preschool staff, especially in low-income areas, has been a difficult experience. 
While some school programs continue year round, many close for the summer or transition to a different program arrangement. Just as teachers look ahead to the summer months and the next school year, so do children. However, young children do not have the experience and cognitive skills to approach this important transition time in the same way adults do. When we understand how children think, we can plan for end-of-year transitions that are positive and smooth. 
